A nonogram is a picture hidden behind numbers. Each row and column tells you how many squares in it are filled, and in what groups. Work through the clues one line at a time and a picture slowly appears: a creature, a mask, a shape that only makes sense once it is finished. Every puzzle here is drawn fresh, has exactly one answer, and can be solved by logic alone, with no guessing. There is also a daily puzzle that everyone in the world gets on the same day.
Nonogram rules
- The grid starts blank. The finished picture is made of filled squares and empty ones.
- The numbers to the left of a row are the lengths of the runs of filled squares in that row, in order from left to right. The numbers above a column work the same way, from top to bottom.
- Between two runs there is at least one empty square. Before the first run and after the last one there can be any number of empty squares, including none.
- A 0 means the whole line is empty.
- The puzzle is solved when every row and every column matches its numbers. Squares you marked with ✕ are only notes to yourself, so they never count against you.
How to play on this page
- Pick Free play and a grid size, or open the Daily puzzle. The timer starts with the puzzle.
- Tap or click a square to fill it. Tap it again to clear it.
- Mark squares you know are empty with ✕. On a computer, right-click. On a phone or tablet, switch the tool under the grid from Fill to Mark.
- Drag along a row or a column to fill or mark a whole stretch at once. The line under the timer shows how many squares the drag covers. A drag only changes squares like the one you started on, so it never wipes out your other marks.
- Numbers turn gray as you finish them, so you can see which parts of a line are done. A whole line is crossed through once it matches.
- Undo and Redo step through your moves; a drag counts as one move. Pause hides the grid and stops the clock.
- On a small screen, use the magnifier to zoom in on bigger grids. While zoomed, drag the numbers to move around.
- Your puzzle, options, best times and daily streak are saved in this browser, so you can close the page and come back.
The daily puzzle
Every day there is one 10×10 daily puzzle, the same for every player everywhere. A new one arrives at midnight UTC, and the page tells you what time that is where you live. It stays on this page, so you can switch between it and free play without losing either.
Solve it to keep your streak going. The panel beside the puzzle shows your current streak, your best one and the last seven days. Once you have solved it, Share copies a short result with your time, your streak and a row of squares for the week. It never shows the picture, so nobody gets spoiled.
Tips for solving
- Start with the big numbers. In a 10-square line, a run of 7 must cover the middle 4 squares however it is placed, so you can fill them right away.
- Add up a line: the runs plus one gap between each. If the total equals the line length, the whole line is decided.
- Work from the edges. A filled square touching the edge must belong to the first run, so the run grows inward from it.
- Cross off squares as soon as you know they are empty. Empty squares split a line into smaller pieces. If a piece is too short for any run that could go there, the whole piece is empty.
- Switch between rows and columns often. Every square you decide in a row gives a new clue to its column.
- If you are stuck, look for the line with the fewest unknown squares left. With "Check for mistakes" off, an error early on can hide for a long time, so count carefully.
How the puzzles are made
Each picture is drawn by the page from a few random shapes, often mirrored like a face or a creature, then smoothed so that it forms solid areas rather than scattered dots. A built-in solver then works through it line by line, the way a person would. If it ever needs to guess, the picture is adjusted and checked again, so every puzzle you get has a single answer that logic alone can reach.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a nonogram?
- A logic puzzle in which number clues on each row and column describe a hidden picture. You use the clues to work out which squares are filled. They are also known as griddlers, paint by numbers or hanjie, and are sold under many brand names.
- What does a clue like "3 1 2" mean?
- That line holds a run of 3 filled squares, then a run of 1, then a run of 2, in that order, with at least one empty square between them. It does not say where the runs start; that is what you work out.
- Do I ever have to guess?
- No. Every puzzle here has been checked by a solver that only looks at one row or column at a time. If it can finish the puzzle that way, so can you.
- Is the daily puzzle the same for everyone?
- Yes. It is made from the date alone, so every player gets the same picture on the same day, wherever they are. The day changes at midnight UTC.
- How does the streak work?
- Your streak counts the days in a row on which you solved the daily puzzle. It stays alive until the end of today, so you have until the next puzzle arrives to keep it going. Miss a day and it starts again from zero, but your best streak is kept.
- Does checking for mistakes change my best time?
- No. Best times are kept for each grid size whether the option is on or off, and daily puzzles count toward the 10×10 best time.
- Do I need an account?
- No. Everything works without signing in. Your progress is saved in this browser only, so clearing your browsing data or switching devices starts you fresh.